Members of Schoolcraft’s Eagle Elite Robotics Team 5227 attended the May school board meeting to present their award-winning robot and request funding for their team to use in the upcoming year. They received it.
Each year, the robotics team is tasked with building a robot capable of performing a certain task or set of tasks to compete with surrounding districts. The goal of the most recent competition season was for teams to build a robot capable of placing a piece of PVC pipe onto branches of a PVC pipe “tree,” with higher branches being worth more points than lower branches. For their performance in this year’s competitions, the robotics team earned two awards: the Rising All-Star Award, celebrating persistence through challenges, and the Engineering in Excellence Award, signifying a team with an advanced design and professional design process.
Seventh grade English teacher Karin Lynch has been coaching the robotics team for three years, reconstructing it after the team “fell apart” during the pandemic. Lynch claimed that being part of the robotics team opens students up to new experiences by teaching them about the engineering process. Members of the team may use their experiences to secure college scholarships and future internships with companies that sponsor them.
Lynch and members of the robotics team performed for Schoolcraft’s board members and requested funding for equipment to help the team continue to learn and grow. They sought funds for a desktop computer and a Prusa Core One 3D printer that would allow all members of the team to learn more about computer-aided design processes. The computer is estimated to cost between $1,000-1,500, and the ideal printer would cost $1,199.
Members of the board were impressed by the team’s presentation and were eager to help finance their future.
Also at the school board meeting, finance director Taylor Mikel presented plans to purchase a new school bus and van within the next two years. The recommended bus is the same as Schoolcraft’s other school buses, but longer, increasing the passenger capacity without needing to hire any more bus drivers. The new vehicle’s similarity would allow it to accept parts from older buses, if any are damaged. Schoolcraft intends to sell its oldest bus to pay for the new van, leaving the school with twelve buses and six vans.
The school board voted to approve the KRESA budget for the 2025-2026 year. Members of the Schoolcraft Education Association expressed gratitude for a successful art event and Teacher Appreciation Week, which was especially valued during busy end-of-year events in May.
